The Starcourt Mall, which appears in the latest season 3 of Stranger Things, is simply awesome, to say the least! It has everything on offer for the Midwestern consumer of the mid-80s and can be seen captivating the Hawkins’ residents. The creator of the series, Matt and Ross Duffer seem to have a good understanding of the nostalgia associated with the 80s era, and what really makes Starcourt the biggest star of the third season, apart from Maya Hawke, the newcomer of course! >/span>

Premiered on the 4th of July, the third season of Stranger Things follows the Hawkins kids as there is romance in the air, with danger just around the bend. A funfair related to the launch was held at the Santa Monica Pier in California earlier in July, transforming the well-known spot into an 80s themed carnival. The Netflix series has had quite a run ever since the first season was released in July 2016. On an interesting note, here are many interesting facts related to Stranger Things series, in terms of numbers.

How the mall was found

Getting back to how Stranger Things found the Starcourt Mall, the creators were well aware of the fact that the once-bustling symbols of consumerism, these malls (hundreds in numbers) had to shut down over a period of time and several of them were not in best shape, particularly because of the online retail industry and other economic forces. Just like any abandoned place, they have transformed into ghost locations that attract a lot of curiosity today.

The Starcourt Mall that we see in Stranger Things 3 is one such struggling shopping center called Gwinnett Place Mall situated in suburban Atlanta. It was revitalized (for at least a few months) and returned to its mid-80s look, for the latest season.

The production designer of the series, Chris Trujillo had a humongous task in front of him to pump some life back into the dying structure. He was well aware that the costs associated with building a new set from scratch would be too big to handle, so he spent several weeks in Atlanta’s suburbs, looking for an ideal place which could become the Starcourt of the series.

Talking to the press, he said that the number of derelict malls in Atlanta’s suburbs is simply shocking. The Gwinnett Place once used to be a big attraction for shoppers from all over the state and even opened the Circa 1984, however, it has been facing hard times over the past few years. The huge mall which is gradually collapsing on itself, is in its final stages, after running for over 30 years. In fact there’s much more to this mall than meets the eye.

Although the mall is operational still, majority of it is vacant and in a state of absolute despair. The place depicts a very sad and abandoned feeling. However, it served as an ideal period setting for the sci-fi horror series and is also the right one considering the filmmaking style of Duffers.